iFarmRecord an iPhone automation once and replay it on every screen size
Record the steps once in iFarm on any iPhone. For each tap, iFarm remembers the text on screen under your finger, so on replay it finds the same button on an iPhone SE or a Pro Max, waits up to 8 seconds for it, and checks the next screen appeared. Steps without text fall back to the position on screen, scaled to the phone.
Why recorded taps break on another iPhone
The simplest way to record a tap is to save where it happened: "tap at x 320, y 140". Replay that on the same phone and it works. Replay it on a different model and it often doesn't:
- Different screen sizes. A button near the top of a 6.7-inch screen sits somewhere else on a smaller one.
- Different layouts. Apps rearrange themselves by screen size, text size and language, so the same button isn't always the same proportion of the way down.
- Different timing. A slower phone hasn't drawn the button yet when the tap arrives.
- Different starting points. Apps reopen wherever they were left, and icons sit on different home-screen pages on different phones.
Scaling the coordinates fixes the first problem only. iFarm's Mirror does exactly that for live control (it repeats your taps on all checked phones, scaled to each screen), and it's great while you watch. For an automation that runs unattended on a mixed farm, you need replays that find the button itself.
How iFarm anchors taps to text
When you record in iFarm, each tap saves more than a position:
- The text under your finger, for example "General" or "Search", and where you tapped relative to it.
- A check for the next screen. After each tap, iFarm notes a new word that appeared (say "iOS Version" after tapping About) and adds a check step.
On replay, for each tap iFarm:
- Waits up to 8 seconds for the button's text to appear.
- Waits for scrolling to stop.
- Picks the copy of that text nearest where you originally tapped (useful when a word appears twice).
- Taps it, then checks for the word that should appear next.
A failed check is noted in the run's log ("Skipped (optional)…") instead of derailing the run. Steps without any text, like a tap on an icon-only button, fall back to the position on screen.
| Recorded tap | What replay looks for | On a different iPhone |
|---|---|---|
| A labelled button ("Settings", "Next") | The text, near the original spot | Found wherever the layout puts it |
| The same word twice on screen | The copy nearest the original spot | The right copy, not the first one |
| An icon with no text | The position, scaled to the screen | Works when the layout is similar |
| Opening an app | An Open app step by name | Works wherever the icon is |
Record one
- Open a phone large in iFarm and press Record in the Automations box.
- Use the phone through iFarm's live screen. Taps, swipes, holds, Home and volume buttons, typed text and the pauses between them are recorded.
- Press Stop and save. It appears under Automations in the sidebar.
A few things happen for you while recording:
- A recording made on the home screen starts with Home, so replays start from the same place.
- If an app is open when you press Record, or you open one while recording, iFarm restarts it so the recording and every replay begin on the same screen. Opening an app is saved as an Open app step, so it works even if the icon is somewhere else on another phone.
- Pauses longer than 10 seconds are shortened to 10 seconds.
- Only gestures that reached the phone are recorded. If one fails, the log says so: just do it again.
Note: Recording covers what you do in iFarm's live view, not touches made directly on the phone. iOS doesn't let any app see those.
Edit the steps
A recording is a starting point. Every step can be edited, moved, deleted or added:
| Step | Use it for |
|---|---|
| Tap text | Tap a button by its label |
| Wait | A fixed pause, or a random range such as 2–5 s |
| Swipe | Scroll or swipe between screens |
| Wait for text | Hold until something appears (and check it did) |
| If text is on screen | Handle a screen that only sometimes appears |
| Repeat N times / for N minutes | Loops |
| Sometimes (50%) | Do a step on some runs and not others |
| Open app | Start an app by name, from a fresh state |
| Open link | Open a web address in a new Safari tab, or an app link |
| Type | Enter text in the focused field |
| Home | Go back to the home screen |
Text settings make one automation reusable: add a setting such as site or search and use it in steps as $site. Change the value in the automation's Settings box without editing the steps, for example https://www.google.com/search?q=$search in an Open link step.
Built-in templates are read-only; Duplicate makes your own copy to edit.
Run it on every phone
Pick checked phones, all phones, a group or one phone, then Run. A phone that was disconnected for being idle is started first. To run it regularly, put it on a schedule (once or N times a day at random times inside a window, on chosen weekdays), or chain it with others in a flow.
If something gets in the way on one phone, iFarm tries to recover: it dismisses a system alert, taps a "Not now / Skip / Close" button, goes back, or reopens the app. If the step still can't be done, the run stops with a screenshot of where it got stuck, and the phone is sent Home.
Test mode: when you want failures, not recovery
For QA on real iPhones, turn on Test mode in an automation's header. It flips the defaults:
- Popups are left to your steps, so you can test permission prompts with a step that taps Allow or Don't Allow.
- Nothing tries to recover, so a problem shows up as a failure.
- Every "Wait for text" step must pass, including the checks a recording adds automatically.
- Each run writes a pass/fail report: an HTML page with every check, a screenshot of each, the phone and iOS version, the app's version and build, the timing and the full log.
Record a flow once on one phone, run it in test mode on every model you own, and compare the reports.
Build one without recording
Two other ways produce the same kind of automation:
- Let an AI do it once. On a phone's page, type the task in its Claude box and turn on Save as automation. The AI does it while you watch, and iFarm saves every step it took, with the same text matching and next-screen checks as a recording. Every run after that is free. More in letting Claude control an iPhone.
- Write the steps in the editor by hand.
Share it
- Export… saves an automation as a JSON file; anyone can Import it into their iFarm.
- Community templates (Automations → Community templates) lists automations other iFarm users have shared. They're plain steps, never code. An installed template is marked Community · not reviewed by you and can't run until you open it, read the steps and press I've read the steps.
- Share to community… on your own automation removes private details first (phone names and IDs, saved passcodes, your Mac user name and file paths) and shows you the exact file before anything is shared.
Frequently asked questions
Will an automation recorded on an iPhone 15 work on an iPhone SE?
Usually, yes. Taps on buttons with text are found by that text, wherever the smaller screen puts them. Taps on icons without text use the position scaled to the screen, which works when the layout is similar; replace those with a text step if one misses.
What happens if a button takes a few seconds to load?
Each tap waits up to 8 seconds for its button and for scrolling to stop. For slower screens, add a Wait for text step or a longer wait.
Can I add random waits to an automation?
Yes. Any wait can be a random range such as 2–5 s, and "sometimes (50%)" steps run on some runs and not others. That's useful for varied test runs. iFarm doesn't hide automation from apps, so follow each app's rules.
Does a replay need AI?
No. Recorded automations replay with no AI at all: fast and free.
Can I record touches I make on the phone itself?
No. iOS doesn't let any app see touches made directly on the phone, so record through iFarm's live screen.